Chapter 143: For The Best
Rose wasn’t surprised when the crown prince requested her presence in his room when nightfall came. She was surprised by who brought the message. It was just after she had eaten dinner when a knock lifted her from her bed.
Rose didn’t think much of it, as the maids usually came around this time and they tended to wait for her to open the door before they walked in. Rose didn’t mind; she preferred it. Other than it being an excuse to move around, it also gave her the chance to prepare to receive them. Not that she was usually doing anything unruly, but it was nice to have the option.
"Mister ’Enry," Rose called as she opened the door, her voice held as much surprise as her face did. She had not seen the steward in a while and was almost certain he was avoiding her. The last time she had seen him was in the crown prince’s room when she showed up unannounced. He hadn’t said a word to her, but there was neither the time nor the opportunity for that, so she couldn’t fault him.
"Rose," he whispered. His voice sounded thicker than usual as though speech was a little difficult.
She curtsied in response. Was it just her, or did he look older? Has it been that long since she last saw him? Rose decided it was probably the torches playing tricks on her eyes. It was too late to see in the first place.
"I thank the ’eavens that you’re doing fine, Mister ’Enry," she added to her curtsey before slowly standing to her full height.
"So am I," he whispered, smiling. The corners of his eyes crinkled and he looked at her meekly.
Rose did her best to return his smile, but she couldn’t help but think about Martha. She almost felt bad for the steward; she knew how badly he wanted to help his niece. Almost, though. Rose didn’t feel an iota of guilt or sympathy in respect to Martha. In her opinion, compared to what she had to go through, the maid might have gotten off easy.
She had been lucky. Things could have easily gone south with the kidnapping—she could have ended up dead—but Rose had decided not to think about the bad things that didn’t happen.
Her smile froze on her face as she waited for him to say what he was here for. "Would you like to come in?" she offered, more from a lack of knowing what else to say.